Patch so that when prerequisite file names begin with a hyphen,
their absence is not an error.

diff -u make-3.79.1-orig/configure make-3.79.1/configure
--- make-3.79.1-orig/configure	Fri Jun 23 09:09:54 2000
+++ make-3.79.1/configure	Tue Nov 20 18:42:18 2001
@@ -802,7 +802,7 @@

 PACKAGE=make

-VERSION=3.79.1
+VERSION=3.79.1-sm

 if test "`cd $srcdir && pwd`" != "`pwd`" && test -f $srcdir/config.status; then
   { echo "configure: error: source directory already configured; run "make distclean" there first" 1>&2; exit 1; }
diff -u make-3.79.1-orig/configure.in make-3.79.1/configure.in
--- make-3.79.1-orig/configure.in	Fri Jun 23 09:09:41 2000
+++ make-3.79.1/configure.in	Tue Nov 20 18:42:08 2001
@@ -3,7 +3,7 @@
 AC_PREREQ(2.13)dnl		dnl Minimum Autoconf version required.
 AC_INIT(vpath.c)dnl		dnl A distinctive file to look for in srcdir.

-AM_INIT_AUTOMAKE(make, 3.79.1)
+AM_INIT_AUTOMAKE(make, 3.79.1-sm)
 AM_CONFIG_HEADER(config.h)

 dnl Regular configure stuff
diff -u make-3.79.1-orig/file.c make-3.79.1/file.c
--- make-3.79.1-orig/file.c	Tue Jun 20 07:00:16 2000
+++ make-3.79.1/file.c	Tue Nov 20 17:55:14 2001
@@ -26,6 +26,7 @@
 #include "job.h"
 #include "commands.h"
 #include "variable.h"
+#include "debug.h"       /* DB, DB_VERBOSE */
 
 
 /* Hash table of files the makefile knows how to make.  */
@@ -56,6 +57,11 @@
 
   assert (*name != '\0');
 
+  if (*name == '-') {
+    /* sm: skip dontcare flag; it gets interpreted in enter_file */
+    name++;
+  }
+
   /* This is also done in parse_file_seq, so this is redundant
      for names read from makefiles.  It is here for names passed
      on the command line.  */
@@ -122,9 +128,35 @@
 #if defined(VMS) && !defined(WANT_CASE_SENSITIVE_TARGETS)
   char *lname, *ln;
 #endif
+  int dontcare_flag = 0;
 
   assert (*name != '\0');
 
+  if (*name == '-')
+    {
+      /* sm: skip and interpret new flag:
+
+         When the name of a prerequisite file begins with a leading hyphen 
+         ("-"), but that file doesn't exist and can't be remade, we consider
+         the file to be out of date (so the target gets rebuilt), but ignore
+         the error.
+
+         This is useful for autodependency rules, when one of the files that
+         was used to compile some .o file has been renamed or deleted.  The
+         .o file should be recompiled of course, but 'make' shouldn't
+         complain.  When the .o file is recompiled, the autodependency info
+         will be correctly updated, and the problem won't persist.
+
+         This is in contrast to user-written dependencies, where the user
+         should take responsibility for maintaining accuracy.
+         
+         (sm = Scott McPeak, 11/20/01)
+      */
+      name++;
+      dontcare_flag = 1;  /* originally for Makefiles, has (almost) right effect */
+      DB (DB_VERBOSE, (_("Setting dontcare for `%s'.\n"), name));
+    }
+
 #if defined(VMS) && !defined(WANT_CASE_SENSITIVE_TARGETS)
   lname = (char *)malloc (strlen (name) + 1);
   for (n = name, ln = lname; *n != '\0'; ++n, ++ln)
@@ -161,6 +193,7 @@
   bzero ((char *) new, sizeof (struct file));
   new->name = new->hname = name;
   new->update_status = -1;
+  new->dontcare = dontcare_flag;

   if (f == 0)
     {
diff -u make-3.79.1-orig/main.c make-3.79.1/main.c
--- make-3.79.1-orig/main.c	Tue Jun 13 07:24:45 2000
+++ make-3.79.1/main.c	Tue Nov 20 17:49:24 2001
@@ -1072,6 +1072,10 @@
   if (print_version_flag)
     die (0);

+  /* sm: I want programmatic access to version info inside the Makefile */
+  /* (maintainer: feel free to change what this variable is called) */
+  define_variable("GNUMAKE_VERSION", 15, VERSION, o_default, 0);
+
 #ifndef VMS
   /* Set the "MAKE_COMMAND" variable to the name we were invoked with.
      (If it is a relative pathname with a slash, prepend our directory name
@@ -1718,6 +1722,12 @@
                         mtime = file_mtime_no_search (d->file);
                         any_remade |= (mtime != NONEXISTENT_MTIME
                                        && mtime != makefile_mtimes[i]);
+                      }
+                    else
+                      {
+                        DB (DB_BASIC,     /* sm: helpful when hacking dontcare */
+                            (_("Igoring failed Makefile `%s' b/c of dontcare.\n"),
+                             d->file->name));
                       }
                   }
                 else
diff -u make-3.79.1-orig/remake.c make-3.79.1/remake.c
--- make-3.79.1-orig/remake.c	Tue Jun 20 07:00:17 2000
+++ make-3.79.1/remake.c	Tue Nov 20 17:53:48 2001
@@ -681,7 +681,19 @@
     }
 
   file->updated = 1;
-  return file->update_status;
+
+  if (file->update_status==2 && file->dontcare) 
+    {
+      /* sm: I don't change file->update_status, because I want to
+         minimize the effect of my changes, and I don't think it's
+         necessary, based on my reading of update_file */
+      DBF (DB_BASIC, _("Suppressing error with `%s' because of dontcare.\n"));
+      return 0;      /* interpreted as success by caller */
+    }
+  else
+    {
+      return file->update_status;
+    }
 }
 
 /* Set FILE's `updated' flag and re-check its mtime and the mtime's of all